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Report: Sharp Supplying Displays for Q3-Bound Apple Television

Apple released an update Apple TV set top box in March (interface pictured), but reports indicate we could be getting an actual television. Photo: Ariel Zambelich/Wired

Photo by Ariel Zambelich

Apple has the chops to seriously disrupt the burgeoning smart-TV space, so when there's any indication that an Apple-branded television could actually exist, well, we can't help but get excited.

The latest word comes courtesy of Chinese news site 21cbh.com, which reports that Sharp is supplying the displays for Apple's dedicated TV. The site says that, originally, the television sets were expected in Q4 of this year, but they should arrive in Q3 now instead.

This follows a report in May that Foxconn CEO Terry Gou said that his company was making preparations for the "iTV." Foxconn recently embarked on a joint venture with Sharp Electronics Co.

"We believe the pieces are in place for a launch soon," Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White wrote in a research note. White also said that on a recent trip to Taipei he learned that Apple is planning to incorporate "a special type of motion detection technology on the future full blown Apple TV."

Earlier this year, there were conflicting reports that Apple had begun reaching out to component suppliers for the set. Some analysts Wired spoke with thought it was possible we could see an Apple television before the end of the year, but not likely.